REPS. BRENDA LAWRENCE, SANDY LEVIN, AND DEBBIE DINGELL AND MICHIGAN BUSINESS LEADERS SEND CLEAR MESSAGE TO HOUSE REPUBLICANS TO CALL A VOTE ON THE EXPIRED EX-IM BANK CHARTER

DETROIT – Reps. Lawrence (MI-14), Levin (MI-09), and Dingell (MI-12) joined business leaders from throughout Michigan Wednesday to demand that House Republicans call an immediate vote to reauthorize the Export-Import Bank charter before irreparable harm is done to hundreds of Michigan companies and hundreds of thousands of hard-working Americans.

“In 2012, the Bank was reauthorized with overwhelming bipartisan support due to its critical role in ensuring American businesses and manufacturers remain globally competitive. Ex-Im has operated for more than two decades with a default rate of less than 1 percent, which is better than their private banking sector counterparts, and while contributing nearly $7 billion to the U.S. Treasury for deficit reduction. It is the only option our Michigan companies have when going up against foreign competitors who are heavily subsidized by their governments, many of which have multiple Export-Import Banks.” Rep. Lawrence said. “If our Republican colleagues are serious about reducing the deficit, creating more jobs, and remaining globally competitive, we must immediately call a vote to reauthorize the Export-Import Bank.”

Rep. Levin emphasized the need for immediate action by citing the tens of thousands of Michigan jobs and the billions of dollars in Michigan exports that are on the line.

“The Export-Import Bank supports nearly 60,000 jobs and over $9 billion in exports in Michigan. It is outrageous that the Republican Majority has let their ideology outweigh program effectiveness at the expense of American businesses and American jobs. If we want to ensure that Michigan’s economy can continue to grow, Congress must take action to reauthorize the bank,” Rep. Levin said.

“The State of Michigan and the entire country is dependent upon our representatives in Congress to renew Ex-Im’s mandate. As an institution that has historically held remarkable bipartisan support, there is no reason to end Ex-Im now. While Ex-Im’s support of large U.S. corporations is highly publicized, it is impossible to ignore the fact that 90 percent of Ex-Im’s transactions directly impact small businesses’ capacity to export their goods and services, and to further create jobs. If our Congress is truly committed to advancing the interests of those they represent, there is no other option than to extend Ex-Im’s mandate immediately,” said Fay Beydoun, Executive Director of the American Arab Chamber of Commerce and COO of Tejara Global Business Development Center.

Despite months of warnings from the nation’s business and lending leaders, Republican congressional members refused to deal with the matter before the June 25th recess, and before the Bank’s charter expired on June 30th. House Republicans have said there is no urgency in holding a reauthorization vote because the Bank’s existing loan programs will continue for the next 27 years. Without reauthorization, however, the Bank has made clear that it cannot continue with its self-sufficient loans and programs, shifting the burden of the cost of those loans to American tax-payers.

From 2007 to 2014, the Export-Import Bank has created or sustained 1.5 million private sector jobs – including more than 58,000 jobs in Michigan – at no cost to taxpayers. From 2007 to 2014, the Export-Import Bank supported more than $9 billion in exports from 190 Michigan companies.

“The Export-Import Bank is designed to help American companies like Acme sell the goods we make at home to customers overseas. It provides loan guarantees and working capital when commercial banks can’t or won’t, giving U.S. companies the ability to level the playing field when we’re competing against countries like Germany, Italy, or Spain around the world. Congress must vote to let the bank continue its operations or it will disappear – along with the critical help it offers businesses like mine,” said Glen Carlson III, President of Acme Manufacturing.

“Even though Futuramic Tool & Engineering does not use the Ex-Im Bank directly, our customers rely on Ex-Im. So their success is also our success. The more products they sell, the more parts and tools they will need,” said John Crouch, Vice President of Futuramic Tool & Engineering.